American Dental Association (ADA) Establishes New Oversight Agency for Continuing Education Recognition Program

CHICAGO - The American Dental Association’s (ADA) 2014 House of Delegates recently established a new commission to oversee the ADA Continuing Education Recognition Program (CERP). As an agency of the ADA, with independent authority to approve continuing education (CE) providers that meet rigorous standards for quality, the new Commission for Continuing Education Provider Recognition (CCEPR) will ensure that CERP meets the standard of impartiality required of agencies that approve providers of CE.

The CCEPR, which will be composed of 16 members appointed by the ADA, the American Association of Dental Boards, the American Dental Education Association, the American Society of Constituent Dental Executives, and the national associations of the nine ADA recognized dental specialties, has the authority to approve CE providers, adopt standards and policies and manage administration of the program. CE providers approved through the program will continue to be designated as ADA CERP Recognized Providers.

CERP promotes continuous quality improvement of CE and provides dental regulatory agencies with a sound basis for uniform acceptance of CE credits that are mandated by 50 licensing jurisdictions for maintenance of dental licensure. A list of ADA CERP recognized providers is published at ADA.org/CERP.

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About the ADA

The not-for-profit ADA is the nation's largest dental association, representing 161,000 dentist members. The premier source of oral health information, the ADA has advocated for the public's health and promoted the art and science of dentistry since 1859. The ADA's state-of-the-art research facilities develop and test dental products and materials that have advanced the practice of dentistry and made the patient experience more positive. The ADA Seal of Acceptance long has been a valuable and respected guide to consumer dental care products. The monthly The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) is the ADA's flagship publication and the best-read scientific journal in dentistry. For more information about the ADA, visit ADA.org. For more information on oral health, including prevention, care and treatment of dental disease, visit the ADA's consumer website MouthHealthy.org